Departmental Official Hospitality

Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much  (a) his Department and  (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on hospitality in each year since 1997.

Simon Burns: Information on hospitality in the Department is not available before 2004.
	Hospitality expenditure is recorded in relation to catering provided for meetings and events. The Department orders the majority of hospitality through the central catering contract, which is used for Richmond House, Skipton House, Wellington House and New Kings Beam House but excludes Quarry House. Hospitality expenditure from 2004 to 2010 for the Department is as follows:
	
		
			   Expenditure on hospitality (£) 
			 2004-05 550,746 
			 2005-06 607,598 
			 2006-07 580,360 
			 2007-08 650,513 
			 2008-09 616,202 
			 2009-10 310,942 
		
	
	Comprehensive information on hospitality for NHS Connecting for Health and a number of our other bodies and executive agencies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Limited information is available from 2002 to 2010 for the Appointments Commission, Care Quality Commission, Health Protection Agency and the Medicines and Health Regulatory Authority. Total expenditure on hospitality by these organisations is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   Expenditure on hospitality (£) 
			 2002-03 2,000 
			 2003-03 1,000 
			 2004-05 129,000 
			 2005-06 186,000 
			 2006-07 188,000 
			 2007-08 282,000 
			 2008-09 351,000 
			 2009-10 429,000

Departmental Utilities

Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much  (a) his Department and  (b) its non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) electricity, (ii) water, (iii) heating and (iv) telephone services in each year since 1997.

Simon Burns: Information on electricity, water and heating expenditure in the Department is not available before 1999. Information on telephone services expenditure in the Department is not available before 2000.
	Information for electricity, water and heating expenditure is collected centrally for a number of the Department's buildings, which are managed, centrally by the Department and NHS Connecting for Health (Connecting for Health was formed in 2005). The figures include Richmond House, Skipton House, Wellington House, Hannibal House (building vacated September 2005), and Eileen House (building vacated July 2005), Hexagon House, Prospect House, Vantage House, 1 Whitehall, Princes Exchange and 8 and 9 Hi Tech Village. Costs for other buildings are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Expenditure on electricity, water and heating from 1999 to 2010 and on telephone services from 2000 to 2010 for the Department (including NHS Connecting for Health) was as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			   Electricity  Water  Heating  Telephone services 
			 1999-2000 682,983 32,607 57,184 (1)- 
			 2000-01 613,563 32,222 78,807 2,743,708 
			 2001-02 632,791 29,010 67,097 2,904,362 
			 2002-03 602,320 34,685 86,367 3,287,264 
			 2003-04 631,337 28,131 78,989 4,645,502 
			 2004-05 754,096 24,081 115,470 4,430,289 
			 2005-06 954,523 43,144 174,364 4,932,848 
			 2006-07 993,195 40,364 149,917 4,714,896 
			 2007-08 1,099,407 35,142 110,240 4,087,360 
			 2008-09 1,577,017 40,333 148,151 4,370,110 
			 2009-10 1,256,179 45,500 156,977 3,405,017 
			 (1) Not available. 
		
	
	Comprehensive information on electricity, water, heating and telephone services from all of the Department's non-departmental bodies and executive agencies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Limited information from 2001 to 2010 has been obtained from the General Social Care Council, Care Quality Commission, Health Protection Agency, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, Monitor, Appointments Commission and the Human Tissue Authority. Total expenditure for electricity, water, heating and telephone services for these bodies is as follows:
	
		
			   Electricity  Water  Heating  Telephone services 
			 2001-02 1,000 (1)- (1)- 79,000 
			 2002-03 21,000 20,000 (1)- 191,000 
			 2003-04 2,000 20,000 (1)- 245,000 
			 2004-05 18,000 (1)- (1)- 213,000 
			 2005-06 12,000 (1)- (1)- 215,000 
			 2006-07 35,000 (1)- (1)- 254,000 
			 2007-08 57,000 (1)- (1)- 300,000 
			 2008-09 4,000 (1)- (1)- 307,000 
			 2009-10 424,000 36,000 6,000 988,000 
			 (1 )Not available.

Food Standards Agency

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many meetings with Food Standards Agency officials he has had since his appointment;
	(2)  what meetings he has had with Board members of the Food Standards Agency since his appointment.

Anne Milton: I met with the following members of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) on Monday 19 July:
	Lord Rooker (chairman);
	Tim Smith (chief executive);
	Margaret Gilmour (FSA executive board member); and
	Chrissie Tsampazi (private secretary).
	A visit to the FSA to meet staff has also been arranged.

Food Standards Agency

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what the location is of each Food Standards Agency office in the UK; and how many staff work at each office;
	(2)  what proportion of the staff of the Food Standards Agency take part in front-line food safety operations.

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  at what locations staff of the Food Standards Agency are employed;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of staff of the Food Standards Agency are involved in front line food safety operations.

Anne Milton: For the financial year 2009-10, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) employed 1,741 staff, including staff working for the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS), an executive agency of the FSA, which was integrated into the FSA in April 2010. 814 of the staff worked in front-line food safety operations, this equating to 46.8% of the total staff employed by the FSA. The front-line staff predominantly carry out food safety inspections and enforcement in approved meat premises.
	The average number of staff located at each FSA office, including those based at the time MHS office in York, was as follows:
	
		
			  2009-10 
			  FSA office  Average number of staff 
			 London 625 
			 Aberdeen 75 
			 Cardiff 35 
			 Belfast 38 
			 York 154

Food Standards Agency

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the use of scientific evidence by the Food Standards Agency in formulating policy on  (a) food safety and  (b) nutrition.

Anne Milton: The Department has not assessed the use of science by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in developing policy but recognise that science is at the core of the agency's business. The Government's Chief Scientific Adviser has assessed the use of science by the FSA, and in a review published in April 2009, considered the agency's use of science to be good and that it has come to decisions which are largely supported by the scientific community. The review also felt that further improvements could be made.

General Practitioners

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of doctors working in GP practices in England are partners in the practice where they work.

Simon Burns: As at 30 September 2009, there were 35,719 general practitioners (GPs) (excluding GP registrars and retainers) in England. Of these, 28,607 (79.6%) were partners in the practice they worked in.

General Practitioners

David Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has estimated the number of GPs presently engaged in direct care of patients who will be required to work full-time on the delivery of his proposed new consortia for commissioning; and if he will make a statement.

Simon Burns: The White Paper "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS" sets out our proposals to devolve power and responsibility for commissioning services to local consortia of general practitioner (GP) practices.
	"Liberating the NHS: Commissioning for patients" published on 22 July, provides further details on the intended arrangements for GP commissioning, providing the basis for fuller consultation and engagement with primary care professionals, patients and the public.
	Under the proposed model not all GPs have to be actively involved in every aspect of commissioning. Their predominant focus will continue to be on providing high quality primary care to their patients. It is likely to be a smaller group of primary care practitioners who will lead the consortium and play an active role in the clinical design of local services.
	GP consortia will have the freedom to decide what commissioning activities they undertake for themselves and for what activities (such as demographic analysis, contract negotiation, performance monitoring and aspects of financial management) they may choose to buy in support from external organisations, including local authorities, private and voluntary sector bodies.

Health Services: Standards

Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 June 2010,  Official Report, column 408W, on NHS standards, for what reason there are no plans to publish the world class commissioning datasets nationally.

Simon Burns: The data used in the world class commissioning assurance process was drawn from existing sources. There are no plans to bring these sources together for national publication.
	The White Paper, "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS" published on 12 July 2010, has also set out our proposals for transforming the quality of commissioning by devolving decision-making to local consortia of general practitioner practices.

Health Services: Wales

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the implications are for Wales of the proposals relating to non-devolved healthcare matters contained in the NHS White Paper.

Simon Burns: The NHS White Paper "Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS" applies only to the national health service in England.
	Devolved Administrations and the Wales Office/Scotland Office/Northern Ireland Office are being consulted where the policies in the Bill have incidental or consequential implications for the devolved areas (for example, changes to Arms Length Bodies with remits which extend beyond England).

Hospitals: Admissions

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many hospitalisations involving gun wounds there were in  (a) the London borough of Lambeth,  (b) London and  (c) England in (i) each year from 2005 to 2009 and (ii) 2010 so far;
	(2)  how many hospitalisations involving knife wounds there were in  (a) the London borough of Lambeth,  (b) London and  (c) England in (i) each year from 2005 to 2009 and (ii) 2010 so far;
	(3)  how many hospitalisations of individuals living in Streatham constituency involving knife wounds  (a) there were in each year from 2005 to 2009 and  (b) there have been in 2010;
	(4)  how many hospitalisations of individuals living in Streatham constituency involving gun wounds  (a) there were in each year from 2005 to 2009 and  (b) there have been in 2010.

Anne Milton: The number of finished admission episodes where the external cause codes were knife wound and gunshot wound have been provided. This information has been broken down by England, London SHA and Lambeth primary care trust of residence, 2005-06 to 2008- 09 and 2009-10 April to February provisional data. We have provided you with data for assaults as well as other hospitalisations by knife and gun wound (see clinical codes footnote for clarification of ICD-10 external cause codes used).
	We are unable to provide data on hospitalisation in the London borough of Lambeth or for individuals living in Streatham constituency area as we do not hold information at these geographic levels.
	
		
			  Number of finished admission episodes( 1)  where the external cause code was knife wound or gunshot wound( 2) , in England, London SHA and Lambeth PCT of residence( 3) , 2005-06 to 2008-09 and 2009-10 April to February provisional data( 4) , activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			  England 
			   Knife wound (assault)  Gun wound (assault)  Knife wound (other)  Gun wound (other) 
			 2009-10 (April to February)(4)  4,303  199  11,884  826 
			 2008-09 4,914 199 12,381 921 
			 2007-08 5,239 222 11,899 959 
			 2006-07 5,720 229 11,513 1,086 
			 2005-06 5,496 225 11,052 1,008 
		
	
	
		
			  London SHA( 5) 
			   Knife wound (assault)  Gun wound (assault)  Knife wound (other)  Gun wound (other) 
			 2009-10 (April to February)(4)  1,099  77  1,467  144 
			 2008-09 1,050 54 1,381 137 
			 2007-08 1,267 64 1,447 146 
			 2006-07 1,395 52 1,417 157 
			 2005-06 1,381 76 1,380 178 
		
	
	
		
			  Lambeth PCT( 5) 
			   Knife wound (assault)  Gun wound (assault)  Knife wound (other)  Gun wound (other) 
			 2009-10 (April to February)(4)  70  8  56  18 
			 2008-09 58 6 31 9 
			 2007-08 86 * 49 13 
			 2006-07 85 7 60 15 
			 2005-06 67 11 52 12 
			 ( 1)  Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of in-patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of in-patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. ( 2)  Cause code A supplementary code that indicates the nature of any external cause of injury, poisoning or other adverse effects. Only the first external cause code which is coded within the episode is counted in HES. Codes in italics are those used to define assault.  Knife wound: W26 Contact with knife, sword or dagger X78 Intentional self-harm by sharp object X99 Assault by sharp object Y28 Contact with sharp object, undetermined intent The above four codes identifies 'any' sharp object, and therefore includes (but is not limited to) knife.  Gunshot wounds: W32 Handgun discharge W33 Rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge W34 Discharge from other and unspecified firearms X72 Intentional self-harm by handgun discharge X73 Intentional self-harm by rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge X74 Intentional self-harm by other and unspecified firearm discharge X93 Assault by handgun discharge X94 Assault by rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge X95 Assault by other and unspecified firearm discharge Y22 Handgun discharge, undetermined intent Y23 Rifle, shotgun and larger firearm discharge, undetermined intent Y24 Other and unspecified firearm discharge, undetermined intent Y35.0 Legal intervention involving firearm discharge ( 3)  SHA/PCT of residence The strategic health authority (SHA) or primary care trust (PCT) containing the patient's normal home address. This does not necessarily reflect where the patient was treated as they may have travelled to another SHA/PCT for treatment. ( 4)  Provisional data The data is provisional and may be incomplete or contain errors for which no adjustments have yet been made. Counts produced from provisional data are likely to be lower than those generated for the same period in the final dataset. It is also probable that clinical data are not complete, which may in particular affect the last two months of any given period. There may also be errors due to coding inconsistencies that have not yet been investigated and corrected. ( 5)  NHS Re-organisation In July 2006, the NHS reorganised strategic health authorities (SHA) and primary care trusts (PCT) in England from 28 SHAs into 10, and from 303 PCTs into 152. As a result, data from 2006-07 onwards is not directly comparable with previous years. We mapped the current London SHA to the following SHAs prior to 2006-07: North Central London, North East London, North West London, South East London and South West London. Lambeth PCT remained the same during the PCT changes.  Data quality Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain.  Small numbers To protect patient confidentiality, figures between 1 and 5 have been replaced with "*" (an asterisk). Where it was still possible to identify numbers from the total, an additional number (the next smallest) has been replaced.  Activity included Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector  Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), the NHS Information Centre for health and social care.

Hospitals: Admissions

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the proportion of staff time at accident and emergency departments in each strategic health authority area spent on treating victims of domestic violence; and what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of such activity in each of the last 10 years.

Simon Burns: The Department does not collect this information centrally; with no estimate being made on the proportion of staff time spent or the cost of accident and emergency departments treating victims of domestic violence.
	The way in which the national health service manages the treatment of its patients, including victims of domestic violence, is a local operational matter. What is important is that high quality urgent and emergency care services are provided that are both clinically appropriate and responsive to the needs of the patient.

Maternity Services: Standards

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to improve standards of post-natal care.

Anne Milton: The Department has supported four Royal Colleges (the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Royal College of Midwives, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and Royal College of Anaesthetists) to develop a single integrated set of clinical standards covering the care pathway from pre-pregnancy to parenthood (June 2008). This gives the commissioners specific standards to use to negotiate service provision and helps to ensure the development of high quality maternity care, including postnatal care.
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has published clinical guidelines on postnatal care which sets out the core care that women and babies should be offered during the first six to eight weeks after the birth. Every mother and baby will have an individual plan of care which may include additional care to that in the core guidance.
	The Government aim to offer a better experience for women and their partners, with more scope to them to exercise choice across wider range of settings and services and with wider options through the crucial ante and post-natal periods. The Government are working to provide a real choice in maternity services, enabling women-centred care, and an experience that is as normal as possible and provides parents with confidence about the transition to parenthood.
	White Paper 'Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS' sets out Government's strategy for the national health service-with intention to create an NHS which is much more responsive to patients, achieves better outcomes with increased autonomy and clear accountability at every level. With regard to maternity Government will extend maternity choice (although recognising that not all choices will be appropriate or safe for all women) and help make safe, informed choices throughout pregnancy and childbirth by developing new provider networks.
	We recognise the important role that health visitors can play in the early years and announced in the coalition agreement that we will fund an extra 4,200 Sure Start health visitors. Health visitors provide the link between Sure Start children's centres and the NHS. They will need to work across general practice and children's centres, working closely with maternity services and other agencies concerned with children and families.

Medical Records: Databases

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence he took into account in his assessment of the need for a centralised summary care records database.

Simon Burns: We believe there is a need for both patients and clinicians to be able to access patient records in an electronic form. This is part of our thinking about making information transparent and available, while involving patients in decisions about their health care. The experience in Scotland, which has had an electronic summary similar to the summary care record (SCR) operating for a number of years, shows the continuing benefits it provides to patients receiving emergency and out-of-hours care.
	However, effective use of the SCR depends on patients and doctors feeling an ownership of the records. We believe the current processes that are in place need to be reviewed to ensure that both the information that patients receive, and the process by which they opt-out, are as clear and simple as possible. In addition, should patients choose to opt-out they must be able to do so as early in the process as is feasible. Foremost in our minds is the need to ensure the security of the data contained in the record.
	We intend to review the content of the record and consider whether we can improve the process whereby patients can opt-out. Strategic health authorities have been informed that no further information letters should be sent out to patients about the SCR until after the review has concluded.

Muscular Dystrophy

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will assess the effects of implementing the recommendations set out in International Standards of Care for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy on NHS patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy;
	(2)  what steps his Department takes to ensure the provision of care to  (a) children and  (b) young men with Duchenne muscular dystrophy; what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of such provision; what information his Department for bench-marking purposes holds on the provision of such services in Denmark; and if he will publish a national framework on standards of care provision for those with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Paul Burstow: It is the responsibility of health and care professionals, working in conjunction with patients and their families, to arrange the most appropriate health and social care for those living with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The National Service Framework for Long-term Conditions (the NSF) provides an overview how this care should be provided. The 11 Quality Requirements of the NSF are compatible with more condition specific standards of care, such as the international TREAT-NMD recommendations for DMD. We have made no assessment of the effectiveness of the provision of care for those with DMD.
	We have no plans to publish a national strategy for the care of DMD. The NSF's Quality Requirements apply equally to DMD as they do for any other neuromuscular condition. The NSF covers all aspects of care from assessment, through diagnosis, information/education, treatment and support, to end of life decisions and palliative care. We have no plans to assess the effects of implementing the recommendations set out in international standards of care for those living with DMD.

NHS: Finance

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to achieve the proposed £20 billion efficiency savings in the NHS.

Simon Burns: "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS" (Cm 7881) set out our commitment of releasing up to £20 billion of efficiency savings by 2014, which will be reinvested to support improvements in quality and outcomes. The Department is working with national health service organisations through the Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention initiative to identify how efficiencies can be driven and services redesigned to achieve the twin aims of improved quality and efficiency.
	In order to divert more resources to the front-line, NHS management costs will be reduced by more than 45%. The costs of bureaucracy will be further reduced by radically reducing the NHS functions of the Department and reducing the number of its arms length bodies by at least one third.
	Work has also started on implementing efficiency improvements in front-line care, for example by improving care for stroke patients, the 'productive ward' programme, increased self-care and the use of new technologies for people with long-term conditions.

NHS: Finance

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the oral statement of 12 July 2010,  Official Report, columns 661-63, on the NHS White Paper, what plans he has for the debt held by  (a) strategic health authorities and  (b) primary care trusts.

Simon Burns: The White Paper, "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS" published on 12 July 2010, has set out the Government's proposals for transforming the quality of commissioning by devolving decision-making to local consortia of general practitioner practices. "Liberating the NHS: Commissioning for patients" published on 22 July, provides further information on the intended arrangements; and the details of the financial regime will be worked up in light of the consultation process.

Nutrition: Pregnant Women

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will discuss with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions the adequacy of out-of-work benefits in providing for a healthy diet for women  (a) before and  (b) during pregnancy.

Anne Milton: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health regularly meets with his ministerial colleagues to discuss a variety of issues.
	The Department has an existing statutory scheme, Healthy Start, that offers a means-tested nutritional safety net to pregnant women and very young children in very low income unemployed families in a way that encourages breastfeeding and healthy eating. Healthy Start provides vouchers that can be put towards the cost of milk, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables and infant formula milk at any participating retailer. Babies supported by the scheme get two £3.10 vouchers per week, and pregnant women and other children under four get one £3.10 voucher a week.

Palliative Care

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment his Department has made of the quality of palliative care in England.

Paul Burstow: The Department is due to publish the second End of Life Care Strategy annual report from Professor Sir Mike Richards, National Clinical Director for End of Life Care. The report will acknowledge the progress made to date since publication of the strategy in 2008 as well as highlighting the challenges ahead to help improve end of life care for all adults in England.

Pregnancy: Death

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women aged  (a) 14 to 16,  (b) 17 to 21,  (c) 22 to 24,  (d) 25 to 30,  (e) 31 to 35 and  (f) 36 to 40 years old died from pregnancy-related diseases in each year since 1980.

Anne Milton: This information is not available centrally in the form requested. The following table sets out registered deaths in the United Kingdom with the underlying cause classified as maternal deaths.
	
		
			  Registered deaths with underlying cause given as a maternal death (ICD9 630-676, ICD10 000-099) 
			  Triennium  Number 
			 1985 to 1987 174 
			 1988 to 1990 171 
			 1991 to 1993 150 
			 1994 to 1996 158 
			 1997 to 1999 128 
			 2000 to 2002 136 
			 2003 to 2005 149 
			 2006 to 2008 155 
			  Note: The figures were produced by the Centre for Maternal and Child Enquiries (CMACE) in its triennial publication 'Saving Mothers Lives' (previously known as 'Why Mothers Die'). The conditions included ICD9 630-679 and ICD10 000-099, codes which are "complications of pregnancy, childbirth, and the puerperium".  Source: Office for National Statistics, General Register Office for Scotland, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.

Primary Care Trusts

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who will have responsibility for  (a) strategic planning in the NHS and  (b) reducing health inequalities under his proposals to end primary care trusts.

Simon Burns: The White Paper "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS" published on 12 July, set out the Government's plans for devolving power and responsibility for commissioning national health service services. The majority of NHS services will be commissioned in future by local general practitioners' (GP) consortia, which will be held to account by an independent NHS Commissioning Board.
	Strategic planning will take place at a number of levels. The White Paper states that the Secretary of State will maintain responsibility for setting the legislative and policy framework, including developing and publishing national service strategies that will enable the roles of NHS, public health and social care services to be better co-ordinated. The NHS Commissioning Board will develop commissioning guidelines which promote joint working across health, public health and social care, to support GP consortia in commissioning services locally.
	Local authorities will lead the joint strategic needs assessment locally, to ensure coherent and co-ordinated commissioning strategies, working together with commissioners of NHS services. Groups of GP consortia will have the freedom to pool their resources to fund services for their collective populations, and to commission in partnership with local authorities to meet common objectives.
	The NHS Commissioning Board will have a duty to promote equality and tackle inequalities in healthcare access and outcomes. GP consortia will also have a duty to promote equality. The new public health service will also have an important role through the ring-fenced public health budget, to include a new "health premium" designed to promote action to improve population-wide health and reduce health inequalities.

Streptococcus: Babies

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to prevent group B streptococcal infections in newborn babies.

Anne Milton: The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) has a Green-top guideline, Prevention of Early onset Group B Streptococcal Disease, which provides guidance for obstetricians midwives and neonatologists on the prevention of early-onset neonatal group S streptococcal (GBS) disease. RCOG also produced parallel patient information, Preventing GBS infection in newborn babies (information for you), for women and their families who are expecting a baby or are planning to get pregnant. Advice from that guidance features on the NHS Choices website and in the Pregnancy book, currently given out to all pregnant women in England.

Swine Flu

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the appropriateness of the decision to implement a mass vaccination policy to protect against influenza A(H1N1);
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the proportionality of the measures taken by his Department in response to the perceived level of risks from influenza A(H1N1);
	(3)  what steps he plans to take to increase levels of public understanding about the characteristics of pandemics;
	(4)  what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department's communications with the public and the press on the influenza A(H1N1) pandemic.

Anne Milton: I understand that the decision to implement a mass vaccination strategy was taken in accordance with the best available scientific advice provided by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies and the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.
	The four nations commissioned an independent review into the United Kingdom response to the 2009 influenza pandemic, chaired by Dame Deidre Hine, which issued its report on 1 July 2010. Dame Deirdre concluded that the preparations for a pandemic were "soundly based in terms of value for money" and the response to swine flu was "proportionate and effective". This publication can be found at:
	www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/ukresilience/ccs/news/100701-flu-pandemic-review.aspx
	Dame Deidre also reviewed the effectiveness of the Government's communications and concluded that there was
	"strong evidence that the government's communication strategy was successful in building public awareness of pandemic influenza".
	It did however recommend that we explore increasing public awareness of the characteristics of a pandemic.
	The Department and Cabinet Office are currently reviewing the National Framework for responding to an influenza pandemic (2007), and the Government will take these recommendations into consideration in planning for the future to ensure that we remain one of the best prepared countries in the world for any future pandemic.

Apprentices: Employment

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he made of the proportion of former apprentices who found employment within a year of completing an apprenticeship in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Hayes: An apprenticeship is a work-based programme and an apprentice must have a job or a work placement as a condition of completing their apprenticeship framework. Many will already be in permanent employment prior to the end of their apprenticeship. Management information on the subsequent employment of apprentices is not available.
	We collect information about the destinations of learners in to learning and employment through the Framework for Excellence (FfE), which will provide prospective learners and employers with performance information to help inform the choices they make about learning and training. We intend to include learner destination information at provider level when we publish FfE data as official statistics later this year.

Apprentices: Per Capita Costs

Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the average cost to the public purse was of an apprenticeship place in the latest period for which figures are available.

John Hayes: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education allocate funding to the Skills Funding Agency for the provision of apprenticeships in England. Spending on 16-18 and adult apprenticeships for 2008-09 financial years is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Apprenticeship expenditure 2008-09-England 
			   £ million 
			 16-18 apprenticeships 630 
			 19+ apprenticeships 347 
			 Total 977 
			  Source: LSC Annual Report and Accounts for 2008-09. 
		
	
	It is not possible to provide a meaningful average cost to the public purse of an apprenticeship. The public cost of delivering an apprenticeship varies significantly depending on the industry in which the apprenticeship framework is being delivered; length of stay on the programme; whether the framework is at Level 2 or 3; and whether the participant is in the 16-18, 19-25 or 25+ age group.
	For example the SFA estimate that it costs £2,749 to deliver a Level 2 adult apprenticeship framework in Supporting Teaching and Learning in Schools and £4,083 to deliver the Level 3 equivalent framework. Between industries the difference in estimated costs can be more marked. SFA estimate that the cost of delivering a Level 3 adult apprenticeship in clock and watch repair is £13,409 but the cost of an adult apprenticeship at the same level in business and administration is £3,327.

Business: Government Assistance

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Bedford constituency have received loans from the Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme in the last 12 months.

Mark Prisk: The Enterprise Finance Guarantee came into operation in January 2009. As of 21 July 2010, in the Bedford constituency 16 businesses have drawn down loans totalling £1.22 million.

Business: Regulation

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will introduce a one in, two out policy to reduce the number of regulations on business.

Mark Prisk: The Government are introducing a One-in, One-out rule to cap the cost of regulation to business.
	I am satisfied that the One-in, One-out rule as it currently stands will start to bring about the radical change required to the culture of regulation in Whitehall.
	While regulation is necessary to protect consumers, employees and the environment, Government should ensure that all regulation is proportionate and targeted.

Cairn Energy

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the government of Greenland on the plans of Cairn Energy or its subsidiary Capricorn Oil Limited to drill for oil off the coast of Greenland.

Mark Prisk: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has had no discussions with the Government of Greenland on this matter.

Cairn Energy

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions his Department has had with the chief executive of  (a) Cairn Energy and  (b) other representatives of Cairn Energy or its subsidiary Capricorn Ltd on its plans to drill for oil off the coast of Greenland since July 2009; and if he will publish the minutes of those meetings.

Mark Prisk: The body within the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills that deals with the UK oil and gas industry and its international interests is the energy team of UK Trade and Investment, which has had no discussions with Cairn Energy or Capricorn Ltd on this matter in the period since July 2009.

Copyright: Music

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to bring forward proposals to extend the period for which musicians may receive royalties for their recordings.

Edward Davey: Policy responsibility for Intellectual Property rests with the Department for Business Innovation and Skills. The lengths of copyright term (which determines the period over which musicians receive royalties), are harmonised across the EU, and the Government has no plans to put forward its own proposals.